BBA Week Article

Assistance in Action: Jon Cowen and Robin's Candy

When you walk into Robin’s Candy, you are transported to a different
world. Enormous canisters of jelly beans and gummy bears frame the largest
licorice collection on the east coast and a decadent selection of chocolates and
confections. It’s truly a magical place that brings joy to children and adults
alike. But Robin, like many other small business owners in Back Bay, faced
serious financial repercussions in the wake of April 15th’s Boston Marathon
Tragedy. Thanks to the Boston Bar Association’s Marathon Assistance
Project, Robin received the help she needed to set her business right. Here’s
her story:

“As a
small business owner, I never would have had access to the resources that Jon
Cowen and Posternak Blankstein & Lund provided me. They guided me each step
of the way. Without them, the process would have been inscrutable.” – Robin
Helfand

The first business decision Robin Helfand made in the
wake of the Boston Marathon tragedy was to view the City of Boston’s website
offering information to small businesses. A savvy businesswoman armed with an
undergraduate degree from Tufts and a Marketing MBA from Cornell, Robin had her
bases covered from an insurance perspective, having both terrorism and civil
authority insurance coverage. While perusing the site, Robin came across a “white paper” written
by attorney Jon C.
Cowen at Posternak Blankstein &
Lund
on business interruption insurance. After reading the paper, Robin knew her
case required legal assistance, and immediately contacted the City of Boston who
put her in touch with the BBA’s Marathon Assistance Project. The attorney she
was referred to was the very same attorney whose white paper encouraged her to
seek legal assistance in the first place…Jon Cowen.

“Jon has been
amazing, both with his time, commitment, and legal help. He has consistently
made himself available over the phone and in person. As a legal lay person, he
helped me understand the complexities of the case.” – Robin
Helfand

Robin’s case is unique. Her store had only been open for
less than a year when the tragedy occurred, and in addition to business
interruption, loss of revenue and loss of inventory issues, Robin dealt with
prolonged closure due to lack of staff access, delivery disruption and an
investigation by the Joint Terrorism Task Force pursuing a lead about a
suspicious person in the shop. The combined impact had a long term effect
beyond the disruption of day to day business; Robin places orders for her
specialty candy across the United States and around the globe up to a year in
advance. Loss of revenue in April can affect inventory orders for the
December holiday season, which impacts her ability to place orders for the
following Easter, and so on. The experience has been challenging for Robin– and
that’s putting it lightly.

“Even the aspects of the claim we
expected to be simple and straightforward have been met with significant
resistance from the insurance carrier. Due to the absence of industry experience
with these types of events, we are charting new territory. The lack of precedent
has allowed the carrier to take a very narrow view of the policy’s exclusions
and limitations.” - Jon Cowen.

Still, Robin is
relentlessly upbeat about the challenges she is facing. Despite the fact that
she has only recovered a portion of what she and Jon believe the carrier should
reimburse, Robin has approached this as a learning experience, and not just for
herself.

“I
hope this experience helps set a precedent in a positive way so that others
don’t have to undergo the same complex process that I did. Other folks may not
have access to the legal assistance I did thanks to the City of Boston and the
Boston Bar Association. I am so grateful for the help that everyone has provided
me thus far.” And Jon? “As far as I am concerned, he walks on water.” – Robin
Helfand